XX
Power Trip
The next step for Shiri and Ashton was to make their way to his family's farm. It was located just north of the city off Route 36. At Ashton's suggestion, they would rent bikes again and bike their way to the farm. It wasn't a very long distance, and going by bike would be both cheaper..
Ashton was in the shower, and Shiri sat on the bed as she waited for him to finish getting ready. She stared at her phone miserably. Her stomach was tied in knots, her jaw clenched. The last half hour had been a doozy of emotion.
Her mother was disappointed with her. She had no job, and she was sure Joseph would not hire her back if this adventure ended poorly. She had no idea how to even feel about Simon. And she had cried what felt like a whole year's worth of tears.
But then she closed her eyes and in her mind she saw Celebi, heard their voice directing her toward the path she had chosen to take. She remembered the pokémon she had witnessed in Pewter, remembered how Boltund was until Celebi helped him. Shiri was often full of doubts, but at this very moment, she did have some measure of clarity she needed to hold onto.
She looked down at her two poké balls on the bed in front of her. One was a standard poké ball holding Houndoom; the other was a cherish ball with Boltund. Holding Houndoom's ball in her hand, feeling its sturdy weight, gave her a little more stability to her situation. She sat forward and let Houndoom out of her ball.
Houndoom looked around the room, sniffing here and there, then looked to Shiri and wagged her long, thin tail, the pointy tip waving like a flag. Shiri stuck out her hand which Houndoom sniffed then licked. "Simon adores you," Shiri said, mostly to herself. "He'll want you back. We will find him again."
Looking at her with intelligent eyes, Houndoom made a little sound like a boof and tipped her snout up. Shiri wondered if that was meant to be something like assurance. "You'll help us, won't you?" Shiri asked her directly. Houndoom barked in response. Shiri took that as a yes.
As the two biked out of Goldenrod City, Ashton finally told Shiri the history of his family's farm. Shiri listened, adding in the bits and pieces Ashton had shared with her over the years of their friendship to put together the whole picture.
The Kayano family had lived on a sizable piece of land for several generations. They had long been sustenance farmers up until Ashton's father took control of the land. When Ashton had started out on his gym challenge, his father acquired a number of surrounding plots of land, in effect doubling the size of the farm. This took them from sustenance to profit, if a modest one.
Kayano Farms had been known for their handmade artisan goods. Mr. Kayano knew they could never hope to compete with MooMoo Farms up north, but he still wanted to try. They kept a small number of miltank on their farm but rather than sell the milk, they utilized it. Mrs. Kayano and her daughter promoted their berry-scented soaps and shampoos made from farm-fresh ingredients. They produced jams and jellies sold in sturdy glass jars which were made in Johto and shipped to Kanto and Sinnoh. Mr. Kayano had carefully curated their artisan, farm-to-table brand that drew thousands to their products, which were sold at premium prices.
Even Shiri's own mother loved Kayano Farms' jam. Early in their friendship, when Elise was still working long hours for short tips and James still lived with them, Ashton had gifted the family a selection of jams. Elise fell in love with them, and between the three of them, the jams went quick. Elise kept the jars, placing them in windows with fresh-cut flowers to cheer their little apartment up.
Shiri could still recall the day some years later when Elise had secured the general manager position she now held. Her eyes glistening with tears, she said with a laugh that they finally had Kayano jam money. She had bought them regularly ever since.
That memory brought a brief smile to Shiri's lips, but it faded quickly as she considered this new development. She didn't want to think of it as selling out to Silph Co., but that's the term that seemed to fit here. Kayano Farms was built on their handmade, independent, farm-fresh image. It seemed like that was spoiled now that Silph Co. owned them.
But was that even true? According to Ashton, Kayano Farms had been bought out years ago. They had been overseen by a farming corporation called the Kanto-Johto Agricultural Coalition. Perhaps it was about the presentation rather than the reality behind it.
The morning air was warm, and it didn't take long for Shiri to start sweating. They took a break on Route 36 for water and a brief rest. Ashton leaned against the trunk of a thick, shady tree, pulling his long, thick hair up off his neck. "Forgot how warm this area gets."
Shiri settled down in the grass beside him. She looked at her phone, hoping somehow she would see a message from Simon, but only disappointment greeted her.
"How much longer?" Shiri asked.
"Not far," Ashton told her. "We just gotta head up to Route 37 and then we'll take a little dirt road. Shouldn't be more than twenty minutes, I'd say."
They continued on. As they weren't going at a very fast pace, Shiri let Boltund out of his ball. He trotted beside Shiri, tongue dangling out of his panting mouth, pausing here and there to sniff the air. His excitement made her smile. Ashton in turn let Patches out, and she rode on his shoulder, her fluffy tail waving in the wind.
They crossed Route 37 and came up to the road Ashton had mentioned, but it was no longer just a dirt road. Black pavement cut through the trees and foliage of Route 37, curving into the forest. Ashton paused at the beginning of the road, his brow furrowing. "When did this get here?" he wondered aloud.
Shiri felt her stomach tighten. "I guess it makes it easier to get trucks in and out," she said. Ashton didn't say anything, only cycled on, and Shiri followed.
The road stretched for a quarter of a mile. They rounded a bend, the trees clearing out at a hard line to the edge of the farm's property. Berry fields stretched out for miles around them, some vines heavy with their fruit while others were still growing. The air was sweet with their scent, and Shiri could see ledyba, butterfree, and yanma flying over and around the greenery, their cries a gentle symphony.
"It's gorgeous," Shiri said to Ashton. "And massive!"
"It's bigger than the last time I was here," Ashton responded, his eyes on the road ahead of them.
A grouping of buildings came into view, the center of which was a charming red-colored wooden house. It was two stories and featured a wrap-around porch. Branching off from there was a second, smaller house with a hand-painted sign outside that read "Front Office - Come on it!" The road widened here to a large paved parking lot. There were a few cars parked there, and down the way a bit were a couple of small trucks peeking out from behind the front office.
A young woman came out of the front office, her face cast in shadow by a large-brimmed hat which sat firmly on her head. She shared Ashton's deep tan skin and thick, black hair. Hers was tied into a long braid which snaked over her shoulder. She was dressed in overalls which were stained by countless hours of hard work on the land and a deep red flannel shirt with the sleeves pushed up over her muscular forearms. She caught sight of Shiri and Ashton as they stopped in the parking lot.
"Kerry!" Ashton called to her. Her expression tightened as she walked over to her. "Wow, things have really changed."
Kerry hummed in agreement, her dark eyes falling on Shiri and Boltund. "Friend of yours," she said to Ashton. An observation, not a question, but Shiri felt like she was about to be interrogated.
"Yeah, this is Shiri, my best friend," he said. "I've told you about her. Shiri, my sister, Kerry."
Shiri smiled and stuck out her hand to shake Kerry's. Kerry returned the gesture, her palm cool and calloused.
"Phil's got your pokémon," Kerry said to Ashton, releasing Shiri's hand quickly. She turned around.
"Wait," Ashton said, and she paused. "You don't wanna catch up?"
"I can't just drop everything because you show up with almost no warning," Kerry said coldly.
Ashton nearly winced at her words. "What about mom and dad?"
"They're in Olivine City 'til the end of the week," she said over her shoulder as she walked away. "Maybe call more often and you'd stay in the know."
Shiri felt a wave of embarrassment for Ashton, and she turned her glance to Boltund for a moment to allow Ashton to collect himself. He scoffed and folded his arms over his chest. "I mean, I guess she has a point," he said in a low voice.
Shiri reached out and squeezed his shoulder. "You good?"
Ashton smiled, dropping his arms. "Yeah, I'm good," he said, and he looked at the front office door. "Alright, let's get my team."
They walked into the front office, the door chiming with a bell as they passed through. Although the building looked like a house on the outside, the inside resembled an office. They walked into a small foyer with cream-colored walls and white tile floors, the windows covered in horizontal miniblinds which let in sunlight through narrow slats. A small desk was set up next to an open doorway which led to the rest of the building. On the wall opposite the desk hung a flat-screen television which played a business news broadcast on very low volume.
The air smelled still, sterile, and the cool conditioned air chilled the sweat on Shiri's skin. This place felt like it belonged in Saffron City, not on an artisan farm.
A man passed through the doorway. He had a three-figure haircut on his head, a four-figure smile on his face, a five-figure suit on his slim body. "Good afternoon," he greeted in a Kanto accent. "How may I help you today?"
"I'm Ashton Kayano," Ashton spoke. "I'm guessing you're Phil. Kerry said she left some pokemon with you for me to pick up."
"Oh, yes," Phil said, moving toward the desk. He took three poké balls from the top drawer and held them out for Ashton to take. "You're the trainer of the family. I've heard a lot about you from your parents," he added as he handed them off.
"That so?" Ashton said with little interest. Shiri could tell he wanted to get out of there as soon as possible. She turned her face away to hide her amused grin.
And her eyes fell on the TV just as a breaking news report interrupted the thrum of incomprehensible stock discussion.
"This just in," the news anchor broke in with high energy, "a thief has reportedly made off with a Kanto entrepreneur's pokémon." Phil glanced over Ashton's shoulder, then grabbed the TV remote to turn the volume up a few notches, and the three of them watched the report in silence.
"Rocket Mall CEO Vance Kaliber reported that his pokémon, a specially-bred and trained sylveon he had gifted to his son, was taken yesterday morning. According to Mr. Kaliber, the thief was one Simon Harron." Shiri felt the room fall away as a photo of Simon flashed on the screen. It wasn't a flattering photo at all: overexposed, over-saturated, Shiri figured it must have been an ID photo. "Mr. Harron, an internal employee of Pokémon Labs, Inc., made news earlier this week during an odd outbreak of pokémon violence at a giveaway in Pewter City." Now video footage from Simon's battle against the magmar played on the screen, although muted. "Mr. Kaliber is offering a substantial reward on any information as to Mr. Harron's whereabouts." The news anchor read off the contact line for such information, and Shiri turned away from the TV, stunned.
"Saffron just isn't as safe as it used to be," Phil commented, shaking his head.
"You got that right," Ashton responded. He threaded an arm through Shiri's, shaking her out of her shock. "Thanks for your help. You have a great day, now."
Phil flashed his perfect smile. "Hey! You do the same!"
Only when they were outside with the door to the front office closed securely behind them did Shiri breathe again. Without exchanging words, Shiri and Ashton returned Boltund and Patches to their respective balls, mounted their bikes, and tore down the brand new paved road as fast as their legs could push the pedals.